 McDonald signing autographs in 2011 | |||||||||
| No. 25, 29, 8 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Flanker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1934-07-26)July 26, 1934 Roy, New Mexico, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | September 24, 2018(2018-09-24) (aged 84) Audubon, Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 178 lb (81 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Highland (Albuquerque, New Mexico) | ||||||||
| College | Oklahoma (1954–1956) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1957: 3rd round, 31st overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Thomas Franklin McDonald (July 26, 1934 – September 24, 2018) was an American professionalfootballflanker who played in theNational Football League (NFL) for thePhiladelphia Eagles, theDallas Cowboys, theLos Angeles Rams, theAtlanta Falcons, and theCleveland Browns. He playedcollege football as ahalfback for theOklahoma Sooners. He is a member of thePro Football Hall of Fame andCollege Football Hall of Fame.
McDonald agreed to repeat the eighth grade, because his father felt the extra time would give him a chance to grow. He attended Roy High School inRoy, New Mexico, with an enrollment of around 150 students during his freshman year, where he playedquarterback.
As a sophomore, he transferred toHighland High School inAlbuquerque. As a senior, he averaged over 20 yards per carry in football and set the state scoring record with 157 points.
He also set the city scoring record in basketball, and won five gold medals in the state track meet (100, 220, low hurdles and 2 relays).
McDonald accepted a football scholarship from theUniversity of Oklahoma, after the Oklahoma basketball coachBruce Drake, saw him play in an All-star football game in Albuquerque and encouraged him to have his parent write a letter to the football head coachBud Wilkinson. Based on Drake's recommendation, Wilkinson invited McDonald to visit the school's campus and offered him a football scholarship soon thereafter.[1]
In 1953, he spent the season on the freshman team. In 1954, he was a backup running back, registering 27 carries for 128 yards, 2 receptions for 28 yards and 2 touchdowns.
In 1955, he was named a starter at running back, tallying 114 carries for 715 yards (led the team), 16 rushing touchdowns (led the team), 7 receptions for 110 yards (second on the team) and one receiving touchdown (tied for the team lead). He also was a passer on the option play. He became the first player in school history to score a touchdown in every game of a season.
In 1956, he led the team with 119 carries for 853 yards, 12 rushing touchdowns, 12 receptions for 282 yards and 4 receiving touchdowns. At the end of the season he received theMaxwell Award as the nation's most outstanding college football player and finished third in the 1956 Heisman voting.
He excelled as arunning back, never played in a losing game and was one of the key players during the school's 47-game winning streak. In 1985, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
McDonald was also a member of the Delta Epsilon chapter ofSigma Nu fraternity while he was at Oklahoma.[2]
McDonald was selected by thePhiladelphia Eagles in the third round of the1957 NFL draft. As a rookie, he was moved towide receiver after he replaced an injuredBill Stribling in the ninth game of the season, making a 61-yard reception and a 25-yard receiving touchdown from quarterbackSonny Jurgensen.
He was a part of the team that won the1960 NFL Championship againstVince Lombardi’sGreen Bay Packers. In the contest, he had a 35-yard touchdown reception from quarterbackNorm Van Brocklin.
In 1961, he led the NFL in receiving yards (1,144) and touchdowns (13). Against theNew York Giants, he had 7 receptions for 237 yards and 2 touchdowns, which still is a franchise single-game record.
On March 20,1964, he was traded to theDallas Cowboys in exchange forSam Baker,John Meyers, andLynn Hoyem.[3]
In1964, he was switched fromflanker tosplit end, because the Cowboys already had an accomplished flanker inFranklin Clarke and split endBilly Howton had just retired. Looking to improve the receiving corps to help the youngquarterbackDon Meredith, they also traded with thePittsburgh Steelers to getBuddy Dial.
In his only season with the club, he registered 46 receptions for 612 yards (13.3 average) and 2touchdowns (one of them against the Eagles). In1965, with the emergence of rookieBob Hayes he was traded to theLos Angeles Rams in exchange forplacekickerDanny Villanueva on May 14.[4]
McDonald recorded a career-high 67 receptions for 1,036 yards and 9 touchdowns in1965. He was selected to his lastPro Bowl. In1967 he was traded to theAtlanta Falcons in exchange for a draft choice.[5]
On September 10,1968, he was waived following a season with 33 receptions for 436 yards and 4 touchdowns.
In1968, McDonald was picked up by theCleveland Browns for whom he caught 7 receptions for 113 yards and one touchdown. With the retirement ofRaymond Berry the previous year, McDonald was technically the league's active leader in career receiving yards during the off-season but was surpassed in Game 1 byDon Maynard.
His last NFL game was the 1968 NFL Championship Game against the Baltimore Colts. On March 15, 1969, he announced his retirement from pro football.[6]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Won theNFL championship | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1957 | PHI | 12 | 3 | 9 | 228 | 25.3 | 61 | 3 |
| 1958 | PHI | 10 | 3 | 29 | 603 | 20.8 | 91 | 9 |
| 1959 | PHI | 12 | 12 | 47 | 846 | 18.0 | 71 | 10 |
| 1960 | PHI | 12 | 12 | 39 | 801 | 20.5 | 64 | 13 |
| 1961 | PHI | 14 | 14 | 64 | 1,144 | 17.9 | 66 | 13 |
| 1962 | PHI | 14 | 14 | 58 | 1,146 | 19.8 | 60 | 10 |
| 1963 | PHI | 14 | 14 | 41 | 731 | 17.8 | 75 | 8 |
| 1964 | DAL | 14 | 13 | 46 | 612 | 13.3 | 48 | 2 |
| 1965 | RAM | 14 | 14 | 67 | 1,036 | 15.5 | 51 | 9 |
| 1966 | RAM | 13 | 12 | 55 | 714 | 13.0 | 62 | 2 |
| 1967 | ATL | 14 | 11 | 33 | 436 | 13.2 | 75 | 4 |
| 1968 | CLE | 9 | 2 | 7 | 113 | 16.1 | 42 | 1 |
| Career | 152 | 124 | 495 | 8,410 | 17.0 | 91 | 84 | |
McDonald was selected for sixPro Bowls, led the league in touchdown receptions twice (1958, 1961), and led the league in receiving yards once (1961). McDonald was the last non-kicker to play in theNFL without a facemask.
He finished his career with 495 receptions for 8,410 yards and 84 touchdowns, the second-highest total of touchdown receptions inNFL history at the time. He also rushed for 22 yards and gained 1,459 yards and a touchdown returning punts and kickoffs onspecial teams, giving him 9,891 career all-purpose yards. He was inducted into thePro Football Hall of Fame in 1998.
Following the Eagles NFL Championship victory, McDonald wrote an autobiography:They Pay Me to Catch Footballs, published by Chilton in 1962.
He also dabbled in art. He owned Tommy McDonald Enterprises, a studio that did portrait paintings and plaques, mainly of athletes. He did not paint the portraits himself, but had two painters who created them, although he signed them as being by McDonald (Enterprises).[7] A portrait ofJoe DiMaggio sold at auction for $4,000.[8]
He became great friends withPro Football Hall of Fame writer,Ray Didinger, who was a huge fan of Tommy's during his time with the Eagles. As a child, Didinger would spend time with Tommy at Eagles training camp inHershey, Pennsylvania. Didinger helped get Tommy into the Hall of Fame, and then went on to present Tommy into the Hall of Fame. Didinger also wrote a 75-minute play, "Tommy and Me" which tells the tale of Ray and Tommy.[9]
He died on September 24, 2018, at the age of 84. "Tommy McDonald lived life like he played the game of football," Pro Football Hall of Fame president and CEOC. David Baker said in a statement. "He was charismatic, passionate and had fun. He was such a character. Heaven is a happier place today.[10][11]
He is one of at least 345NFL players to be diagnosed after death with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which is caused by repeated hits to the head.[12][13]
| International | |
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| National | |
